Do you take any sort of stall mats with you for shows? I was poking around and found these:
I think they might be really nice for shows (in addition to plenty of shavings of course!). Anyone used them? I think one in the center might be enough to provide just a bit of cushioning and a cozy bed at shows with temp stalls and/or uneven and rocky stall floors. Thoughts?
Interesting.
Wondering about packing them up after use. I guess you would roll them up dirty and hose the pee off when you got home? Stall mats can get pretty smelly!
I would be tempted to not roll them up, but to stick them in the trailer on the side without my horse, then hose and let it dry when I get home….then roll up and start over for the next show.
I have one stall mat, and I believe it is a 6x10 size or similar. (different brand than what you posted)
I have found that they TAKE UP A LOT OF SPACE. That’s probably the biggest inhibitor. It rolls up nice and is light, but if you are packing multiple horses for a multiple day show, you better have a huge trailer. I started with just one mat to see how I like it and I didn’t realize how much space it takes up. So I never bought another one.
I have also found they work the best for INDOOR stalls. If you have any sort of wind or breeze for an outdoor stall, they are too light and the wind will pick them up and blow them. There was a time when I had to set up panels on pretty much gravel, so I wanted to use the mat for extra cushion for my horse but the dang wind kept blowing it around and my horse would knock the rocks of the corners that I tried.
They are nice and cushion-y, especially if your stalls are concrete, but there are certainly some downsides.
If you use shavings, that absorbs most of the urine. And yes, just give them a good washing at home is very easy.
I purchased some similar mats, but not horse branded, although I’ve yet to make it to a show and try them. I wonder if they’re too soft and end up acting like a balance pad? Mine are slightly smaller and I plan to try it along one edge and see what my horse prefers.
I borrowed one of the Performance Stall Mats from a friend that did not cover the entirety of the gravel stall floor at a show. My mare preferred to not stand on it. Even if I moved her to stand on it, she’d immediately step off of it.
I decided to not buy one myself.
We have some of the smaller interlocking “lite” mats we take to shows. They are about 36" x 48" I think. Very thick. We center them in the stall for the geldings or along the back wall for the mares to pee on. Stalls are usually on grass or dirt, so it is hard to get the wet sawdust bedding out. I had only had the two mats, but found some more recently at a tack sale for a good price. We will have to experiment to see how that works in laying them out using more mats.
We find them awkward with stiffness and the widths, but not heavy to move, We just lay them on the trailer floor under the carriage or in the trailer ramp aisle under horse heads, where horses are backed into rear facing stalls. They do save time and work cleaning stalls! They do stay put under the big horses, are fairly thick at over an inch. Shod horses with road studs have done no damage to them.
What did it feel like to stand on? I am mostly curious because the place I show the most has uneven and sometimes rocky floors in the stalls, and I end up adding tons of shavings and even then it feels “lumpy” at times.
Right now they also have a sale where you can get a free Rambo Supreme turnout blanket for spending $300, which I need anyway, so the overall expense isn’t that much to test it out. Or that is how I am justifying it to myself!
I have something similar, from Rural King. A friend found them when she was going to a show that set up temporary stabling in a tent on a gravel parking lot. We didn’t want our horses standing on that with just shavings. Hers worked so well that I got some too. I have 6 and plan to get 3 more, which will cover the whole stall floor. I’ll see if I can find them online and post a link.
I’d say the closest comparison is maybe cushy wrestling mats? A friend and I have wondered if the material would be fatiguing at all, since the Sure Foot therapeutic pads seem like they provide a similar feel?
I’d opt to probably try interlocking foam mats before investing in the Performance mats. The Performance mats are also very bulky to travel with. For us, the rear tack room space was completely taken up by the mat and then a muck bucket.
I bought the mats that are interlocking from Smartpak (free shipping!). I did have to trim the 10x10 set to fit in show stalls since 10x10 is not actual floor space of the stalls. I used them for several years bc several venues did not have matted stalls and no matter the pile of shavings my guy rubbed his hocks raw. I sold them once I wasn’t showing anywhere that didn’t have mats (so happy hits brought Balmoral mats and stalls to lamplight).
It was always a trick to pack them since I trailer with whoever is going to the show since I don’t have a trailer. At the end of the show I just swept them off and washed them once we were home with a hose.
If you use a mat, give your horse space to avoid standing on them if they so choose. I know a horse that saw the body worker and presented as horribly body sore, pretty much all over. They eventually figured out the cause - squishy mats in her stall with no option to stand elsewhere. The squishiness made it a workout to balance, thus the soreness. Found that pretty interesting and enlightening!
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